Kohala Lighthouse Surf Forecast and Surf Report

Alright, Rusty here. Let's look at what's on the table for the next couple of weeks.

To be straight with you, the outlook is a tough one for the paddle surfer. The whole 16-day window is a write-off for quality surf. There's not a single day where the conditions line up for a good session. From Wednesday, August 5th, all the way through to Thursday, August 20th, it's a consistent run of poor surf. The wind is locked in from the east-northeast, blowing a cross-shore breeze at 15 to 22 mph, sometimes even 25 mph, which just tears the surface up. The wave comment is "poor surf conditions" for almost every single period, with only a couple of days near the end of the second week (August 17th and 18th) even being described as "marginal".

The only spot in the mix is Kohala Lighthouse – a heavy advanced reef break. It's consistent, but it's exposed to the north, and the swell we're getting is from the ENE. The optimum swell direction for this place is from the north, so we're not even getting the right angle. The swell heights build through the period, starting around 4.3 ft and climbing to a solid 10 ft by the 18th. The combined swell energy gets strong, hitting values like 1529 by the 18th, but it's all for nothing with that cross-shore wind. The period is short, mostly 6 to 9 seconds, so it's a jumbled, weak windswell, not a clean groundswell. The water temp is about average for the time of year, but you won't care about that when you're fighting a lumpy, choppy mess.

The only flicker of hope is on Monday, August 17th afternoon and Tuesday, August 18th, where the swell gets up to 8 ft to 10 ft from the ENE, with a period stretching to 9 or 10 seconds. The energy is strong (1138 to 1529), and the comment shifts to "marginal". But it's still cross-shore at 22 mph, and the break quality is poor. This is big, powerful, and messy – strictly for experts only if they're desperate. It's the best of a bad bunch, but it's not a standout. Honestly, the whole setup with that much wind and that kind of swell at a beach setup would look more interesting for kite surfing than paddle surfing.

Hang in there, but don't hold your breath. This is a blank run.

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